The Future and Me
by Davetheman
Summary: Getting sucked close to 200 years in the future is shocking enough, but finding out that the Mass Effect universe is real and is our future is even more so. Finding my bearings is easy enough, but can I convince Shepard to let me help her? I know, bad summary Femshep/Kaidan plus other pairings. M. rating cause you know, Jack. Language. Violence, that stuff. SI of all 3 Mass Effects
1. Prologue

The Future and Me

Chapter 1: Prologue

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait guys. I'm attempting a rewrite of the first two chapters before moving on with the story. One of the main changes will be that I'm switching (and hopefully staying) with a third person view of the story. Let me know if I'm screwing up viewpoints or something. I originally was going to go with the indoctrination theory ending for ME3 but that will change to something else that you will have to stick around to find out. Why the change you ask? Well the Extended Cut was really good and I kinda wanted to do something else anyway. The reason for such a long delay was a few things: namely lacking willpower to write. It's not something I do a lot of and in high school it was a very disliked subject of mine. The second reason is that my parents a I recently went through a small house fire back in March and we're still fixing things. I say small because only my room was completely destroyed. No I didn't lose my laptop, thank God. Upstairs was smoke damaged and two rooms downstairs were water damaged. And also I lost my job in May and am still looking for another job. Ok, ok, I'll stop with the excuses now and begin the story.**

_Upstate New York, 2012_

David Somerville was getting fustrated. Very frustrated. First, the house fire had completely torched his room. Now, a very stupid mistake had cost him his source of income. The stress was piling on and he needed a day to just relax and not deal with anymore bullshit. So, he decided that a trip to Minnewaska State Park was a good way to relax.

David prepped his backpack the night before, making sure all the survival equipment was there, making a couple sandwhiches for lunch, etc. "Well that's that. Guess I should go to bed, need to be there at nine when they open the park." he said.

The next morning, David got up, ate said goodbye to his parents, got into his car and left for the park.

Once at the park, he looked at the map he had gotten at the gate and decided which path he would take. "Haven't done Gertrude's Nose in a while. I'll do that one." With that, David wrestled the backpack on his shoulders and started out on the trails.

_Arcturus Station, 2183_

Commander Mackenzie Shepard stood in awe. Before her, outside the viewport, was the SSV Normandy, the first ship of its kind in the Alliance. She was of part human, part turian design. Sleek lines, oversized engines, and a special type of stealth system made the SSV Normandy SR-1 stand out among the rest of the ships docked at Arcturus Station.

As Shepard stood there admiring the ship, Captain Anderson entered the docking bay and walked up behind her. "What do think of the Normandy Commander?" he asked asked of her.

"She's incredible, sir. Never seen anything like her before." Shepard replied. "Permission to speak freely sir?"

"Granted."

"Alright. Sir, with all due respect, what's really on? This is a simple shakedown run." Shepard continued, "Even if the Normandy is the most advanced ship in the Alliance fleet, we don't need a full crew, especially officers like Lieutenants Moreau and Alenko. I've seen there service records.

Captain Anderson sighed. He knew was going to come up. "I understand your concerns Shepard, I really do. But I'm afaid I can't tell you anything more than you've already heard. I'm sorry Shepard."

"Understood sir."

"Alright, let's get on onboard and get under way."

**A/N: Now, I know what you guys are thinking. Short, I know. But I promise it will get better once I actually get used to writing. It was not my favorite subject in high school so it comes slowly. Also, the stress of helping renovate after the fire does not help me feel like writing. Hopefully I'll kick my own ass and get the second chapter rewritten within the next week. Maybe sooner! Stranger things have happened. ****Fino alla prossima volta i miei amici.**** (Until next time my friends).**


	2. Waking Up

**Chapter 2: Disappeared/Appeared**

**A/N: Just realized I forgot to re-title my first chapter. As you all can see I'm rewriting my first two chapters, as I wasn't really happy with them. So, yeah...**

**Oh, and no I don't actually speak Italian, I just wanted to put that, though I may speak some Italian in the story. And I apologize as it's been more than a week. Long chapter... Anyways, Bioware owns the Mass Effect universe, I just play there.**

"_Stand in the ashes of a trillion dead souls and ask the ghosts in honor matters." -Javik_

_Upstate New York, 2012_

David had been hiking for more than hour, and boy was he feeling it, legs burning, back aching from the weight of the backpack, sweat dripping down his face. "So worth it." he said. He could see up ahead that he was near the end of the path. As he approached the cliff, he pulled out his camera and began to take a few pictures.

The view was extraordinary. The sky was clear, not a cloud in the sky. Below him, he could see an eagle soaring in the breeze, and far off in the valley below, he could animals grazing in an open field.

Shortly after taking several picture, he began to look for somewhere to sit and eat his lunch. Finding a spot, David removed his backpack and opened the compartment with his lunch in it. It consisted of two PB&Js and some cheese puffs, good, light energy food to hike with.

About thirty minutes later, David finished the last of his water bottle and put his trash back into his backpack. He slipped it back onto his shoulders, took one last look around, and set back the way he came along the cliff.

Five minutes later, as he was walking along the path, familiar voices drew him to the cliff on his left. David leaned over the edge and gasped. About ten feet down the cliff face, there was what appeared to be a kind of swirling vortex. There was no color to speak of, just the distortion in the air. The voices became clearer. In the center of the vortex, David could just barely make what looked like people, but they were too distorted to see clearly enough to make out any details.

A voice came through the vortex again: "This is Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams calling the SSV Normandy. We need immediate evac. Commander Shepard is unconscious and needs immediate medical assistance."

David froze. "No, no that can't be possible." he thought. "Ashley Williams only exists in a video game. So what the hell am I looking at?" he said as he leaned a little farther over the cliff to get a closer look.

Without warning, a rather strong gust of wind came up from behind David as he leaned closer. The wind pushed him enough off balance that he found himself tumbling forward off the edge. "Oh shit!" he exclaimed as he began to fall. He tried to find something to grab on to, to stop his fall. But there was nothing he could do, except find peace and wait for the end.

About 20 feet away, a stranger watched David fall. He pulled out his phone and called 911, but it was too late, David was gone. He was most certainly dead. The cliff was over 200 feet high. They would never find his body. The conclusion was that wild animals had dragged him off shortly after he died.

But fate had another purpose David. The vortex was in fact a wormhole into the future, and David shortly found himself landing face first on Eden Prime, breaking his glasses and hitting him on the head hard enough to render him unconscious. The last thing he heard before going under was Ashley startled yelp and Kaidan saying "Where did he come from?"

_SSV Normandy, en route to Eden Prime_

_Two hours before the appearance_

"Hitting the relay in three, two, one." The Normandy hit the relay and was hurtled through the relay, coming into the Exodus Cluster. At the helm, the pilot, Flight Lieutenant Jeff "Joker" Moreau went through a checklist, "Thrusters, check, navigation, check. Internal emissions sink engaged. All systems online. Drift, just under 1500 K."

Behind him stood Nihlus, a Turian Spectre, and Commander Shepard, XO of the Normandy. "1500 is good. Your captain will be pleased." Nihlus pronounced, and walked away.

"I hate that guy." Joker said.

"Nihlus gave you a compliment. So you hate him?" Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, currently sitting in the copilot's seat, asked.

" You Remember to zip up your jumpsuit on the way out of the bathroom? That's good. I just jumped us halfway across the galaxy and hit a target the size of a pinhead, so that's incredible!" Joker exclaimed. "Besides, Spectre's are trouble. I don't like having him on board. Call me paranoid."

"You're paranoid. The Council helped fund this project. They have a right to send someone to keep an eye on their investment." Kaidan offered.

"Yeah, that is the official story. But only an idiot believes the official story."

"They don't send Spectres on shakedown runs." Commander Shepard said, joining in on the conversation.

"So there's more going on here than the captain's let on." Joker replied.

"Joker, status report." Captain Anderson said over the com.

"Just cleared the mass relay, captain. Stealth systems engaged. Everything looks solid."

"Good. Find a comm buoy and link us into the network. I want mission reports relayed back to Alliance brass before we reach Eden Prime."

"Aye, aye captain. Better brace yourself sir. I think Nihlus is headed your way." Joker informed him.

"He's already here, lieutenant." Anderson said, slightly annoyed. "Tell Commander Shepard to meet me in the comm room for a debriefing."

"You get that, Commander?" Joker asked.

"Captain sounded mad. Something must have gone wrong with the mission." Shepard replied, and left the helm area for the comm room.

"Pff. The Captain always sounds like that when he's talking to me."

"I can't possibly imagine why, Joker." Alenko said, sounding a bit sarcastic.

Shepard walked through the CIC, passing Navigator Pressley, who was venting about having a turian Spectre on board to Engineer Adams. Nearer the comm room, she came up on Private Jenkins and Doctor Chakwas talking about Eden Prime, about how peaceful it was and why it would be the chosen destination for their shakedown run of the Normandy.

She entered the comm room, whose only occupant was the Spectre, Nihlus. He turned and spoke to her. "Commander Shepard, I was hoping you would get here first. I need to talk to you."

"About what?"

"This planet we're headed to, Eden Prime is it? What do you know of it?" Nihlus asked.

"They say it's paradise, but I've never been there myself." Shepard answered.

"So you know of it then. It's become something of symbol for your people hasn't it? Proof that humanity can colonize worlds and protect them. But how safe is it really?"

Shepard grew annoyed at that last statement. "If you've got something say Spectre, just say it."

Nihlus's mandibles flared a little in annoyance. "Your people are still newcomers Shepard. The galaxy can be a dangerous place. Is the Alliance truly ready for this?"

With that last statement, Captain Anderson walked into the comm room. "I think it's about time we told the commander what's really going on."

Nihlus agreed. "This mission is far more than a simple shakedown run."

"We're making a covert pick-up on Eden Prime." Anderson continued. "That's why we needed the stealth systems operational."

Shepard was getting frustrated with the stonewalling. "Is anyone gonna tell me what's going on?"

"This information comes down from the top Commander, strictly on a need to know basis. A research team on Eden Prime uncovered some kind of beacon during an excavation. It was Prothean."

That got Shepard's attention. "What else can you tell me?"

Anderson continued. "This is big, Shepard. The last time humanity made a discovery like this, it jumped our technology forward two hundred years."

"Eden Prime doesn't have the facilities to handle something like this." Nihlus said. "That's why we need to get back to the Citadel for proper study. So, obviously this goes beyond human interests, Commander. This discovery could affect every species in Council Space."

"But why didn't we just keep the beacon for ourselves?" Shepard asked.

Nihlus replied. "You humans don't exactly have the best reputation. Some species see you as selfish, unpredictable, too independent, and in some cases, dangerous."

"So now you can see why sharing that beacon will help improve our relations with the Council." Anderson said. "Plus, we need their scientific expertise. They know more about the Protheans than we do."

"The beacon's not the only reason I'm here Shepard." Nihlus said, changing the subject.

Anderson explained. "Nihlus wants to see you in action, Commander. He's here to evaluate you."

"Guess that explains why I bump into him every time I turn around." the Commander said.

"The Alliance has been pushing for this for a long time." Anderson said. "Humanity wants a larger role in shaping interstellar policy. We want more say with the Citadel Council."

Anderson continued. "The Spectres represent the Council's power and authority. If they accept a human, such as yourself, into their ranks, it shows how far the Alliance has come."

Nihlus jumped in. "You held off an invasion on Elysium during the Blitz single handed. That shows particular skill. Which is why I put your name forward as a candidate for the Spectres."

Shepard was speechless for a moment. Then asked, "So what's the next step Captain?"

Anderson smiled a bit. "Nihlus needs to see you action for himself. Eden Prime will be one of several missions you will handle together."

"You'll be charge of the ground team, Commander." Nihlus said. "You'll secure the beacon and get it onto the ship as quickly as possible. I'll will be accompanying you only as an observer."

Shepard nodded. "Just give the word I'll be ready to go."

"Right." Anderson said. "We should be getting close to Eden-"

"Captain! We have a problem." Joker interrupted over the comm.

"What's wrong Joker?"

"Transmission from Eden Prime, sir. You better see this!"

"Bring it up on screen."

The view screen came alive with the familiar staccato of gunfire. The camera panned around to catch a female marine in pink and white armor running and saying "Get down!" as she pushed the cameraman to ground and let loose a burst of rifle fire. The camera eventually spun around to an officer who saying: "We are under attack! Taking heavy casualties. I repeat: heavy casualties! We can't... argh... -eed evac! They came out of nowhere. We need-" But his last words were cut off as a bullet struck him in the torso and killed him.

The video continued to pan around to faces of the other marines, a look of panic on their faces. At the same time, there was a noise that didn't belong to any rifle. It sounded something was whirring in the background. The camera turned toward the noise. In the sky above, a ship descended through the clouds. But this ship was like no other ship in Council space. What could be seen looked tentacles from one of Earth's giant squid. Red lightning flashed around it. The camera shook as the user turned to run. Then the signal faded to static.

"It just cuts out after that." Joker explained. "There's no comm traffic at all. It just goes dead. There's nothing."

"Reverse and hold at 38.5." Anderson instructed the screen.

The video reversed and froze on the picture of the strange ship. There was silence in the comm as the occupants stared at the picture with a mixture of wonder and horror. This ship was massive, bigger than even an Alliance dreadnought. Yet, the video showed it landing on a planet's surface, which should be impossible for dreadnought class ship.

Anderson was the first to recover, "Status report."

" 17 minutes out Captain. No other Alliance ships in the area." Joker informed him.

"Bring us in, Joker. Fast and quiet. This mission just got a lot more complicated."

Nihlus thought for a moment. "A small strike team can move quickly without drawing a lot of attention. It's our best chance to secure the beacon."

"Right." Anderson agreed. "Grab your gear and meet us in the cargo hold." He then turned to Shepard. "Tell Alenko and Jenkins to suit up, Commander. You're going in."

_17 Minutes later_

"Engaging stealth systems." Joker announced over the ship-wide comm as the Normandy approached Eden Prime.

Down in the cargo bay, Captain Anderson quickly briefed the ground team. "Your team's the muscle in this operation, Commander. Go in heavy and head straight for the dig sight."

"What about survivors, Captain?" Lieutenant Alenko asked.

"Helping survivors is a secondary objective. The beacon is your top priority."

Joker's voice came over the comm. "Approaching drop point one."

As Nihlus approached the team, Private Jenkins asked. "Nihlus? You're coming with us?"

"I move faster on my own." With that, Nihlus jogged out of the cargo bay and on to the surface of Eden Prime.

"Nihlus will scout on ahead. He'll feed you status reports throughout the mission; otherwise, I want radio silence." Anderson told them.

Shepard saluted. "We got his back, Captain."

"The mission's yours now, Shepard. Good luck."

"Approaching drop point two." Joker announced over the comm.

The Normandy came to a hover about six feet off the ground and the ground team dropped out of the cargo bay and onto the surface of Eden Prime. As the ship pulled away, the ground got their first look as to how bad the situation really was. The sky was cloudy, and all the clouds they could see had a red tinge to them. It was like the sky was on fire. The ground team could hear the distant sounds of gunfire.

Shepard and her team began moving toward the dig site and a brisk pace. Just over the next rise was a bit of a gully. Shepard ordered the team the halt and checked to make sure the area was clear. She ordered Jenkins and Alenko to move up in a staggered formation, one moving forward while the other covered them.

As Jenkins moved, that was when the mission started to go wrong. Two drones came rapidly around the next curve. Jenkins, being the only member not in cover at that moment, was hit multiple times. His kinetic barriers only held up for a couple seconds, not enough time for him to find cover. The rounds punched through his armor and found the soft flesh beneath. He screamed as the rounds tore through him, and then, he fell to the ground, dead.

Shepard and Kaidan popped out from behind cover and returned fire, destroying both drones with some well placed pistol shots. Holstering their pistols, they approached Jenkins' body. Kaidan knelt down and closed his eyes, then stood back up and addressed Shepard, "Ripped right through his shields, he never stood a chance."

Shepard nodded, grimly. "We'll see that he receives a proper burial. But for right now I need you to stay focused."

"Yes ma'am."

Nihlus came on the comm. "Got some burned out buildings here, Shepard. A lot of bodies. I'm going to check it out. I'll try to catch up with you at the dig site."

They both moved up the hill. As they came around the corner, more drones appeared. "More drones! Take them out lieutenant." the Commander ordered.

A minute later the drones were scrap metal and the two moved on around the corner and came out on top a small hill. Before they could descend the hill, gunfire sounded from around the next corner. The gunfire got louder, and the pair saw a female marine in white and pink armor run around the corner. Behind her, two drones were in hot pursuit. They continued firing, hitting the marine a couple times, making her stumble. As she fell though, she drew her pistol, turned, and fired, sending both drones crashing into the ground.

With the drones destroyed, the marine looked back down the path she had run. What she saw momentarily paralyzed her. Two machines, with a head that looked sort of like a flashlight and two metallic arms and legs, were placing one of the colonists onto a tripod of sorts. The colonist was still alive, and as he looked at one of the machines with fear, a metal spike extended from underneath him. It impaled him all the way through, from his back and out his chest, producing a geyser of blood. It picked him up about 15 feet and stopped, leaving him to dangle there, lifeless.

The marine gasped, drawing the attention of the machines. She quickly turned and ran behind a large boulder, gasping for air. The machines drew there own weapons and began to walk after her. Just as she was about to step out to fire, two biotic fields picked up the machines, leaving them floating helplessly. Easy prey for Kaidan and Shepard to pick off. With both machines down, they approached the lone survivor.

"Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams of the 212." the marine said. "Are you the one in charge here ma'am?"

"Commander Shepard of the Normandy. Are you alright Williams?" Shepard asked.

"Yes, ma'am. Just a few scrapes and burns. Nothing I can't handle."

"Good to hear, Williams. Now what happened here?"

Ashley looked down for moment. It was obvious that whatever happened was troubling her. She looked back up and replied, "We were out on patrol. Everything was normal. Then it wasn't. The synthetics came out nowhere. My squad tried making back but- I think I'm all that's left."

"Any idea what they are?" Shepard asked.

Ashley thought for a moment, then responded. "I think they're Geth, ma'am."

"That's impossible." Kaidan replied. "The Geth haven't been seen for nearly 300 years. Why are they here now?"

"Maybe they came for the beacon. It's just around the corner." Ashley said.

"You should come with us." Shepard said. "We already lost a man and could use the help."

"Yes, ma'am. Time for some payback." Ashley agreed.

"Alright, let's move out!"

**A/N: Due to the fact that this chapter is now over 6 pages long, I am skipping most of the battle on Eden Prime and going to somewhere closer to the end. I apologize if you wanted more but for me this chapter is getting ridiculously long. I'm sure most of you know how Eden Prime goes. Lots of geth and husks and you or your squad mates repeatedly dying. This will be the only time I will do this, simply as I said, I want to get this freaking chapter rewritten and posted already.**

_30 minutes later_

"Normandy? The beacon is secure. Requesting immediate evac." Shepard said over the comm. They had spent the last 30 minutes fighting up to and through the space port. Arriving at the docking platform, they found explosive charges they had to disable. They had just now secured the beacon.

While the Commander was speaking to the Normandy, Kaidan and Ashley were looking at the beacon. "This is amazing." Kaidan said. "Actual working Prothean technology. Unbelievable!"

"It wasn't doing anything like when they dug it up." Ashley commented about the beacon, which was glowing in an unearthly green light. She then turned to go speak to the commander.

"Something must have activated it." Kaidan muttered to himself as he walked closer to get a better look.

Behind him, Shepard was wrapping up her conversation with the Normandy. "Roger that, Normandy. Standing by."

Kaidan leaned in closer. Without warning, the beacon began glowing even brighter. Some kind of field grabbed Kaidan and began dragging him closer to it. He struggled against it, but the pull was too strong.

Shepard looked toward the beacon and saw this happening. She sprinted into action, pushing Ashley aside in the process. She grabbed a hold of Kaidan and flung him out of the way. With him gone, the beacon's pull now had Commander Shepard. It began to lift her into the air. As she rose higher, images began to assault her mind. Images of organic beings being slaughtered by synthetics. It was an extremely painful experience.

Behind on the ground, Kaidan tried to leap back to pull her out the way. "Shepard!"

Ashley grabbed him, holding him back. "No! Don't touch her! It's too dangerous!"

A few moments later, the beacon finished delivering its message to the Commander, and then exploded, its 50,000 year old systems giving up from the strain. It threw her back towards Ashley and Kaidan, the explosive force knocking her unconscious.

Ashley released Kaidan, who dove forward to check on the Commander. She activated her comm. "This is Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams calling the SSV Normandy. We need immediate evac. Commander Shepard is unconscious and needs immediate medical assistance."

"Copy that. We're two minutes out." Joker replied.

"Oh shit!"

Out of nowhere, a young man appeared, hitting the ground head first, breaking his nose. Ashley yelped, surprised by the man's sudden appearance out of thin air. Kaidan hearing, both the impact and Ashley's startled noise, turned around and asked, "Where did he come from?"

"I don't know he just appeared out of thin air. There was nothing one second, and the next there he was hitting the ground."

Kaidan shook his head, unbelieving, "People just don't appear out of thin air, Williams.

Ashley glared at him. "I'm just telling what I saw. He just suddenly appeared."

"Alright, fine." Kaidan sighed. "We'll ask him where he came from after he wakes up. We'll treat him on the Normandy."

About thirty seconds later, the Normandy dropped down into view and slowly approached the platform. The cargo bay doors opened, revealing Doctor Chakwas and Captain Anderson.

"Report." Anderson said.

"The beacon activated when I stepped closer to investigate." Kaidan replied. "Shepard stepped in and pulled me out of the way. The beacon then overloaded, causing a small explosion, knocking the Commander unconscious. And about 30 seconds ago this unknown male just appeared out of nowhere, striking the ground hard enough to knock him out cold."

"Alright. Take Commander Shepard and the young man up to the med bay. We'll find out where he came from after he wakes up. Dismissed." Anderson said.

**A/N: Finito! That means finished. Holy hell that was long. Openoffice tells me I'm on page 9, so yeah, long. Again, sorry about the delay with new chapters. I will be starting the next one very soon, I promise. How soon I finish it, however, may be another matter. I will try my hardest to finish it within a couple of weeks, but no promises. Like I said, writing is not something I do on a regular basis. And thank God for spell check. My fingers get a head of my brain sometimes.**


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